Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1887-01-24
IGNORANCE OR INJUSTICE.


The CdledORian, which intends to
lie right and just. has during the past
few years been so afflicted with a sort
Of mental dyspepsia that it has fallen
into fault-fnding. Recently, in 4
short article On what it termed Blum
dering Legislation" it has the follow
ing 10 fortify & previous assertion
that the legislature was not noted
for its Temperance" standing. and
aIIudes to an article from the Free
Press. etc:
The whole miseroble business
brings rs back to the oft-repeated
assertion that there was law enough
on the statute books. The one thing
lacking Is its execution ana an hon
est desire on the part Of the Of
ficers and the people to see it eXecut-
ed. The people will some day find
out that the way TO secure honest tenn
perance legislation i to send to Mont
pelier honest temperance Legislators"
The above. of course. Is intended
to cast reproach on the Legislators
who helped to improve or to iniure
the laws Of the state relating to tenn
perance matters. Without argument.
we make the assertion that no legis-
lature ever met in Montpelier that
was more largely composed of honest.
ardent temperance men than the legis-
lature of 1856. We challenge the
CdledoHidH to name a single man sent
from Caledonia county that was not
a sturdy temperance man: we also
challenge this carping sheet to name
three men in the whole body OF legis-
lators who could be called other than
temperance men. The fact Is that
every man in the senate. and nearly
every man III the house Is on record
for one or more Of the important tenn
perance measures adopted. When
the high license bill. which had many
plausible features about it. came to a
test vote in the house, only eighteen
men voted for it, and we doubt if a
single man in the senate wished to
vote for it. \ large number in both
houses worked diligently and faith
fully for various measures which were
enacted for the purpose of making
the present law more effective and its
enforcement less difficult. We give
the substance Of some of the enact
ments below, and ask the Caledoujun
if they do not show a most honest
effort in the direction of temperance
legislation:
The first, and perhaps most import
act as published in the newspaper sup
plements, is that relating to compuI-
sorry temperance education, which
practically makes 1t necessary to have
temperance instruction in all classes.
in all the public schools of Vermont.
and another enactment has the books
on this subject selected by a compe-
tent committee. which has been chos-
en- from among the best temperance
men in the state.
The next enactment does away
with the farce of electing a comfy
commissioner at the March elections.
when a few designing persons can
scatter a lot of tickets here and
there, electing anti temperance men
to this office, and provides that he shall
be voted for at Freeman's meeting
ION the general county ticket" There
can be no snap game in this mstter
under the new law.
The next act provides that, ''When-
ever a person confined in Jail, the
house of correction or the state pris-
on, BY reason Of intoxication or bv |
reason of any criminal act done or
while intoxicated, the wife |
Of such person in her own name, and |
in case such person has no wife. his |
minor child or children. may in an ac-
ton founded on this statute. recover
Of the person who by himself. clerk, |
servant or agent. illegally sold, fur